How The Australian Media Covers And Reports Crime - 853 Words

This report aims to analyse how the Australian media covers and reports crime. To accomplish this, the report will explore how The Australian covered the Cairns child murders, in the article entitled â€Å"Cairns deaths: A ‘good mum’ who concealed her demons† published on December 27th 2014. The report will provide insight into the explanation for the crimes occurrence, while investigating the prevalence of the crime type- murder, in Australia. It will also make reference to two of Chibnall’s ‘news values’: dramatization and personalization. On the 19th of December 2014, eight children aged 18 months to 16 years were found dead inside a home in Manoora, Cairns. Investigation revealed that 37-year-old Raina Mersane Ina Thaiday had murdered†¦show more content†¦The final reason the article gives, is that â€Å"Thaiday drank alcohol and used marijuana† (Walker and Elks 2014) and had actually been up late drinking the night before the murders. Again, this theory presented by The Australian can be supported by statistics, as â€Å"there is strong evidence of an association between the consumption of alcohol and violence† (AIC 2010). The Australian is therefore linking the cause of the crime to three interrelated factors: recurring cycle of abuse due to mental health issues, poverty and substance abuse. The type of crime reported on is murder. According to the most recent statistics published on murder in Australia, there are â€Å"1.1 victims per 100,000 persons† (ABS 2013). This makes it a fairly un-common crime, when compared with other western nations, such us the United States, in which murder rates are â€Å"4.7 victims per 100,000 persons†(U.S Department Of Justice 2011). The Australian media however, reports on murder in such a way, which makes it seem more prevalent than it actually is. This is done through dramatized coverage, and drip feed reporting. Thaiday’s crime is prevalent however, in the sense that she committed her murders with a steak knife. And of weapons used in murder, a knife is the most common at â€Å"43